Made of Scars

by Eden Wildblood

  The scars would of course be permanent, but that was okay. He could live with them. It was the iciness he couldn't get to grips with. The stony silences and the cold-shoulder routine from Brodie, they were wearing him down, and so Archie slumped in front of the TV and set up the DVD player for another night of box-set bingeing with Rafferty.

  The next morning, he decided he needed some conversation, and so went down to see Jakob. He took his cup of coffee with him and perched a safe distance away from the motionless vampire, but was glad to see he wasn’t in too bad of a shape.

  “You two stopped beating one another up yet?”

  “For now,” Jak answered with a smile, but then he turned serious, “I wronged him and he’ll never forget it. Never forgive. And that’s okay. I’ve made peace with my past, Archie. How are you managing with him for company?”

  “Bored of the silence mostly,” Archie answered him honestly.

  “Hence why you came to me for a chat?”

  “Yeah…” he said, and sighed, “I don’t get it. He’s crazy powerful and could easily take on this vampire who’s after you, so why is he so worried?”

  “Because it isn’t Marcus who’s the threat, but his hordes,” Jakob told him, and Archie guessed his expression gave his confusion away, because the vampire continued without him having to ask. “He controls a vast vampire army. Soulless soldiers who follow orders and have no mind of their own. They cannot be reasoned or bargained with, and are loyal to only one—”

  “Marcus,” Archie answered.

  “Da. And one jinni might be able to take on a few without a problem, but against thousands? None of us would survive.”

  Christ. That explanation was more than enough to send a shudder down Archie’s spine.

  Jakob was brutally honest, as ever, and it was clear just how careful their small group needed to continue to be.

  Archie knew he was just in a mood. Sulking for the sake of it, and he tried his best not to continue doing so. It wasn’t in his nature to brood, and by the time he’d finished his brew he was sitting taller in his seat, the black cloud above his head finally easing away.

  “Okay, let’s talk about something else,” he mumbled, and then grinned, “like you telling me all about how you and Wynter got together?”

  Now that got Jakob buzzing. He sat up in his seat and smiled back at his friend, and it wasn’t long before he was regaling Archie with the story of how he had found her curled in a ball in Marcus’s office the day a fellow slave had tried to force himself on her.

  “But I held her to me. I was the one who calmed her, and even then, I knew she was special. Marcus pretended not to care. His Priestess disappeared rather than face me. But I saw the truth, and by the time I laid my eyes on that poor broken woman again, I knew she needed to be set free…”

  ***

  Just a few miles away, at the top edge of the Welsh coastline, stood a gang of pale vampire soldiers. They were each sniffing the air, desperate to catch the same scent they had a few weeks’ before, and yet there was nothing to behold. Even though they’d manned their posts in strategic spots around the clock, using the darkest corners the countryside had to offer, Wynter was once again lost to them.

  Marcus arrived in the back of his most prestigious limousine and he climbed out, cursing the wild winds as they swept around him from the sea. The breeze tasted of salt and smelled like shit, and he cursed the alpha as he led him to where he’d sensed her before. Ahead lay the ocean, and the only other close by option was a cluster of islands that were inhabited by, from as far as he could tell, a werewolf. The beast’s scent was all over the damn place and was strong even from this distance, and Marcus knew he could go take the wolf out of the equation with ease, but he wasn’t interested in starting a feud with the wolves.

  Best settle this score first.

  “The wolf might be hiding her,” he said to the witch by his side, who was also staring at the lighthouse ahead in thought. She had ditched her cloak and her red hair whipped around her face in the breeze, her small rounded belly protruding nicely, and Marcus thought how she looked like some kind of formidable goddess of war standing there. It wasn’t too far off. His Priestess’s power knew no bounds after all, and he knew he’d be lost without her.

  “It’s unlikely he has her,” she replied, “but we can wait here. My guess is that she took form momentarily nearby, which is why the scent was so fleeting. Perhaps they boarded a boat? Either way, we will keep looking for any other sign of her. But we cannot make our presence here known, otherwise she will run again.”

  “Yes,” he answered, and then looked around at the few scattered cottages along the coast. One of them was bound to be empty, or better yet, for sale. Much more preferable to have heat and lighting wherever they took up residence. They would set themselves up there for however long it took, while his soldiers continued to lie in wait outside in the elements. But there would be no backing off now. He had to get Wynter back and wasn’t going to pass up the chance to chase the only lead they'd had in months.

  “What will you do when you find her?” Jack asked in a quivering voice from beside them, and Marcus watched as Marcella conjured up a coat to shield her husband from the cool coastal air.

  Humans, they were so damn fragile.

  “I will take everything she refused to give me willingly,” he answered with a sneer, “or I’ll just kill her and be done with all of this. I haven’t decided which yet.”

  It was a lie and he knew it. Marcella too, but she didn’t say so. Despite her and Jack now being married, Marcus was still her master and she would remain loyal to him until her dying breath. She would serve his every need, he knew, and that also meant saving him from his own bruised ego should the need arise.

  ***

  After a few more weeks spent finally mastering flying, Archie realised he’d fallen into a much better routine. He didn’t pay any mind to Brodie’s lingering silences and standoffish demeanour, not now that he and Jakob had built up a rapport during his regular visits.

  At least he had someone to chat with, and he found the old vampire was actually pretty good company. He was well travelled and enjoyed telling him about all the places he’d visited, but was also a keen sports fan and a tech geek. They talked about cars and gadgets, and all the things Archie wanted to buy for himself when he returned to his real life. Whenever that might be, of course. But he had to admit, it wasn’t so bad being cooped up with his strange little bunch of creatures for company. The experience had been eye opening, to say the least.

  On their way back down to the cave one night after a day of perfecting his take-offs, he decided to finally broach the subject of the captive vampire with Brodie.

  “Do you not think it’s time to let Jak out? Let him earn your forgiveness instead of being locked away and out of sight? Surely Wynter misses him?”

  “He will never be forgiven,” the jinni ground, confirming Archie’s suspicions. He simply couldn't let go of his pain. It didn’t matter that the torture was done with and all Jak was doing was festering away in that cell, Brodie seemed to prefer him out of sight, but he clearly would never be out of mind. Not while Wynter was in residence within him. She must surely whisper to him daily about her soul mate? Must beg Brodie to release him?

  “Perhaps he can simply prove himself then? Find a way to get into your good books and show you he means to change?” he tried, and as they reached the doorway to the house, Brodie spun and glowered at him, but Archie refused to back down. He held his ground and stared him right in the eye.

  “You think he’s redeemed himself? Do you forget how much of a threat he will be to you if I set him free? Would you rest easy in your bed at night knowing a vampire is on the loose? One who has tasted you and whose survival hinges on him being allowed more?” he answered with a sneer.

  “He has control of his hunger. I’ve seen so for myself,” Archie replied resolutely. Yes, he knew it was a risk, being near Jak always would be, but Wynter had bee
n human and she’d spent days with him without him harming her. She’d fallen in love with the guy, for heavens sake! He couldn't be that bad.

  “Put your hand through the bars and tell me you feel safe with him. Tell me he won’t attack,” he demanded, and Archie paled but didn’t reply.

  Was he that trusting in Jak that he’d put himself directly in harm’s way? He decided to try. Brodie wouldn’t let anything bad happen to him, even if he’d proven him right. He would stop Jakob, if for no other reason than to spite the vampire rather than let him feed.

  His mind was quickly made up, and Archie went around Brodie and straight into the house and then through to one of the spare bedrooms. There, he grabbed a pillow, thinking it might be nice for Jakob to have something to lean on rather than the dank rock, and then he charged back out of the house and down to his cell without another word to the grumpy jinni.

  “Hey,” he said, and lifted the pillow to show him, “thought you might like this.”

  He then pushed it through the biggest available gap in the bars, his hands going through along with it, and he saw the starving vampire’s eyes flash. The chance was there and they both knew it. An opportunity to feed was within easy reach, but he didn’t attack. All he did was thank him and then step away with his offered gift, and Archie smiled.

  It wasn’t very often he was proven right, and it felt good to know his instincts about Jak were correct. He liked the guy and actually wanted to see him be released. He would gladly keep feeding him when needed, but he didn’t strike him as the sort to foolishly drain his only source of food dry. “So, I’ve been thinking about stuff. You really never once bit Wynter?” he asked, and Jakob seemed surprised by the question but he didn’t shy away. As always, he was honest with his answer.

  “Never,” he told him, “not even when I was fucking her brains out on the bonnet of my car. And in the back seat. And then again at the beach house. We did that a lot…”

  “I gather,” Archie replied with a shy smile, and Jakob beamed. He’d never had the sort of friends who were so open and unashamed about that sort of talk, and it was taking some getting used to. Especially all the details about women.

  “Sex is sacred to most vampires, but I never had a problem with it. And I never went back for seconds before. Not until her.”

  “And then you merged?”

  “Da,” he confirmed, “but Marcus wouldn’t let us enjoy our love. He took her away from me and it was torture. Worse than anything that fucking jinni would try on me,” Jak demanded, probably for the benefit of Brodie’s eavesdropping ears more than for him.

  “Did he fuck her too? Marcus, I mean,” Archie asked, and then almost apologised for overstepping the mark. He didn’t quite know what’d come over him!

  “No, but he took pleasure in biting her and then relishing in the reaction the bite gives a human. He thought she wanted him, but instead she lied to save us both, and let him believe she was still his.”

  “What exactly happens during the feed?” he asked, having also heard from both Brodie and Wynter about the effect of the bite, but he hadn’t actually heard why it was so dangerous.

  “You’d be riding a high the likes you couldn't imagine, and many humans then crave it in the aftermath. So much so they’d willingly beg for the bite again. And you’d be so sexually strung your inhibitions would go out the window. Not the most glamorous of experiences. Wynter never liked how he made her feel, and especially when she’d ended up climaxing because of him. It made her feel dirty. But with me, it was real. The bite was never part of what sent her from one orgasm to another.”

  Archie nodded in understanding. It made sense.

  The bite brought with it an apparent sexual euphoria, and he was glad they'd all warned him not to let Jak do so with him. He’d prefer the cut marks from the blade to his palm than a deep sense of shame he knew would come with being transfixed by the bite.

  They chatted for a while longer, but it wasn’t long before Archie’s stomach was crying out for something to eat, and so he said his goodbyes and then jogged back up to the house. Hopefully Rafferty had something at the ready, or else he had a feeling he might be about to raid his carefully organised cupboards.

  On his way inside, he thought it odd how at home he now felt there. How used he was to the darkness and the cold, damp cave. And of his comrades, the four mystical creatures he knew not a single soul would ever believe had lived there with him.

  He decided he’d just tell people he’d gone to work abroad for a few years. Tell them it was a covert mission for the government, like he’d originally thought it might be, and then say he wasn’t allowed to tell them specifics. Simple. And, how cool would that be? Everyone would be fascinated. He knew he’d be well impressed if an old friend had disappeared only to re-emerge years later with a secret story they refused to tell.

  “Still in one piece, I see,” Rafferty’s voice permeated the silence once Archie was back in the house and had removed his boots and jacket.

  He looked for the source of the sound, and saw one of the ornaments move a few feet to his left, which was Rafferty’s way of showing where he was.

  “Yep,” he answered with a smile, “had Brodie warned you not to expect me for dinner?”

  “He said you were dinner…” the goblin replied, and even though he might not be able to see him, Archie could tell he was grinning.

  He laughed and nodded.

  “Good one. You been reading joke books again?” he teased, and then headed further into the house so that he could grab a shower and get changed for dinner.

  As the water cascaded over him, Archie couldn't help but find himself fantasising over the oddest things. He tried to imagine what he thought Rafferty might look like behind that invisibleness he had no way of penetrating, and whether the goblin was the sort to entertain relationships and such. He was friendly and funny, and plentiful company, but it wasn’t like you had girl goblins running around the place. Or did you? And did they even procreate? He wondered.

  And then his mind went to the jinni he’d shared his days with lately. They didn’t seem to have children either, but they instead took over human hosts and then made them one of their kind. Was it by choice? And if so, would he choose it? Could he imagine himself as one of them?

  Yes, he could. But then of course that’d mean giving up his old life and becoming a misty apparition, like Wynter. Not that she seemed to mind. And neither did Jak. He’d told him they were big into fucking, and Archie had heard them going at it like rabbits that night when she’d appeared. He knew her altered state hadn’t held her back from showing her lover just how much she still wanted him. And at least this way, they were both immortal and could be together forever—whether she was whole or not.

  It was exciting just thinking about how it would feel to have such power and to be able to use it in whatever way he wanted, both in and out of the bedroom. What a thrill it would be to have strengths beyond anything a human could hope to possess. And such stamina too…

  Great, now he was hard.

  Archie was used to his nightly pause mid-wash though. Just another part of his usual routine now that he was leading the single man’s lifestyle. It wasn’t so bad, but of course it meant not being shy when it came to his daily masturbation routine. Hence the regular showers…

  He grabbed his cock and began stroking it, pulling back and forth in moves that, like any red-blooded-male, he’d practiced many a time over the years, and as usual his mind continued to wander. This evening, he fixated on the dark look in Brodie’s eyes as he’d challenged him on the doorstep. He was such a grumpy git, and yet when that fury had flared behind those dark green eyes of his, Archie found he’d liked it. There was something about a bad boy, after all, and even he had to admit having been attracted to the darker side when it came to his exes. And he guessed he wasn’t about to change type now.

  Plus, there could never be anything between them. No one could want more with someone who never even spoke to
him unless it was on their terms, or to tell him off. Archie didn’t want someone who glowered at him the way Brodie did either. Even if it was with that dark and brooding stare.

  Yeah, who was he kidding? In his head, Archie imagined them going from such a standoff to then ripping one another’s clothes clean off. And then some.

  Maybe that was what made it such an indulgent fantasy then? The fact that it’d never happen, and so he could romanticise all he wanted and never end up being disappointed.

  The next morning after breakfast, Archie took his coffee down to Jak’s cell and chatted with him for a bit, and was surprised to have Brodie join them a short while later. He handed him a fresh brew and shrugged when Archie frowned in question. They would usually head straight out when he was done to go and fly.

  “It’s lashing it down out there and a storm is on the way,” he told him, “so no flying. It’s too dangerous.”

  “Damn it,” he groaned. They were really getting somewhere now, and that was when a thought struck him. “If it eases do you think we could go out anyway? The storm will cover the sight and sounds of the chopper if we take it higher. Maybe go for a proper fly?”

  “No,” Brodie answered, and Archie let out a huff. He hadn’t even entertained the idea for a second.

  “Grumpy fucker,” he answered, and Jakob laughed.

  “What? It’s true,” the vampire added when Brodie turned to him with a scowl.

  “I agree too,” the seldom heard voice of his female counterpart added, and then she started laughing when the three men turned to her misty apparition in surprise.

  Archie had to admit, Wynter looked denser than he’d seen her before, clearly having grown stronger the past few weeks, and it was nice to see her again. She went straight to Jak in his cell and was just placing a kiss upon his cheek when Brodie suddenly stiffened.